Joseph F. Connolly, II has come up with some fascinating delusions regarding the origins of true TaeKwon-Do as founded, named, designed, sacrificially promoted and developed by Choi, Hong Hi .  Mr. Connolly has been quite successful in rewriting history as it relates to the WTF's place in it, and having gullible people worldwide believe his version.  The beliefs of zealots of sham TaeKwon-Do (i.e. The WTF), and Connolly's/WTF's acolytes, do not erase the truth as it is known to practitioners of true TaeKwon-Do, and followers of the one true Father, developer and FOUNDER of Tae Kwon-Do.

General Choi is respectfully referred to as "General" Choi because of his honorable service to the Korean Army and his position as two-star General upon his retirement from the Korean Army.  That is the manner in which he is usually referred, and correctly so, within the martial arts and military communities.  Mr. Connolly's slamming of the honorable General in his writings tells us something about the man.  He dishonors himself and flagrantly touts his inaccuracies and false beliefs upon the internet community.

Here's a glimpse of General Choi's personal and military history as the real world views it, and as it actually happened:

1950 he was promoted to Brigadier General

1953 He wrote the first authoritative book on military intelligence in Korea. Organized 29th “FIST” Infantry spearheading TKD in the military

1954 Established the Oh Do Kwan with the help of Nam Tae Hi. Developed his own martial art system, Promoted to Major General (That's Two (2) Stars)

1955 Taekwon-Do named by General Choi and recognized as a formal Korean martial art

1959 Toured the Far East with TKD demonstration team to introduce his art, Elected President of the newly formed Korea Taekwon-Do Association, Published first TKD text.

1961 TKD introduced into the curriculum at West Point. Promoted TKD as a compulsory subject for all S. K. armed and police forces
 

1962 Appointed Ambassador to Malaysia, TKD Demonstration at the United Nations in New York City. TKD grows in Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei.
 

1963 TKD introduced to Vietnam when Gen. Choi demonstrates perfected forms to instructors. The new forms eliminated the remaining vestiges of Karate in the Art. Re-elected President of Korea Taekwon-Do Association
 

1965 Ambassador Choi, retired two-star general, appointed by Korean Government to lead a goodwill mission to West Germany, Italy, Turkey, United Arab Republic, Malaysia, and Singapore and to introduce TKD as the national martial art of Korea.
 

1966 International Taekwon-Do Federation formed March 22. Charter members included Vietnam, Malaysia, Singapore, West Germany, Turkey, Italy, the Arab Republic, the United States, and Korea.
 

1967 Received First Class Distinguished Service Medal from Vietnam and helped form Korea-Vietnam TKD Foundation. Visited Hong Kong and the U.S.

PLEASE NOTE THAT THE WORLD TAEKWON-DO FEDERATION AND THIS "ChungTongKwan Yudo" DON'T EVEN EXIST AT THIS POINT, AND WON'T FOR SOME YEARS TO COME.

To further quote Mr. Connolly's falsehoods:  "Choi promoted himself as the Founder of TaeKwonDo.  There is, of course, no single Founder of Taekwondo, which derived from the Japanese art of Shotokan Karate, and in which all of the founding grandmasters of the original nine kwons of the Korea Taekwondo Association held teaching certificates.  Choi’s claim appears to have originated in a meeting wherein the discussion turned to what to call the new art to differentiate it from Karate-do...   Choi produced (a) goverment-issue dictionary and everyone agreed to the term “TaeKwonDo”.  Of such a pea did Choi’s “Founder” beanstalk grow."

Note that he fails to mention that the term "TaeKwon-Do" was thought up by General Choi and submitted to the committee where it was agreed upon as the new name for General Choi's new art, thus verifying the inferiority of the other existing "kwons" and their hasty and long-overdue departure from the scene of Korean Martial Arts.

This, I think, is probably the most ridiculous quote from Mr. Connolly.      "All of this aside, where Mister Choi disgraced himself in the eyes of the people of the Republic of Korea, is when he unilaterally decided to travel to communist North Korea to negotiate reunification of the two Koreas.  That was just a little over the top in the eyes of most Koreans (North and South) and the South Korean government was not amused.  Choi fled the Republic of Korea. Obviously not welcome in the United States, he settled in Canada.  From Canada he continued to visit North Korea and added Communist China and the Soviet Union to his travel itinerary, at the height of the Cold War.  ITF members seem to forget that Korea, not Canada, remains the home of the Korean military art of Taekwondo."

When one loves one's homeland enough to try to reunify their separate states, that's called "PATRIOTISM".  General Choi no more disgraced himself than did Abraham Lincoln in wanting "One America."  General Choi would have been welcome in the United States, and he had been welcomed many times before.  So impressed was the U.S. Government with General Choi's TaeKwon-Do, General Choi was invited to teach the art of real TaeKwon-Do to U.S. Senators and Congressmen in the 1960's, which he gladly did. 

Here's a question for Connolly and anyone who might believe the things he writes: If someone is not welcome in your country, do you invite them to teach your Senators and Congressmen?  WTF members seem to forget that the Korean government's lust for politics as usual, and their disdain with General Choi's lack of participation in it, remains the sole reason for terrorizing General Choi's family and trying to use TaeKwon-Do for nothing more than political purposes (which, of course, is pro-typical of the South Korean government).  The ITF continues to remain the only official international governing body of true TaeKwon-Do.

Here's some more propaganda-derived south-Korean-government- sanctioned lies quoted, again, by Connolly:  "Oh Do Kwan, the Taekwondo kwon formed by Choi, Hong Hi, is now one of the two inactive kwons of the Korea Taekwondo Association.  (The other inactive kwon being Ji Do Kwan.)  What honorable Korean would want to be associated with a traitor to their nation?" 

I have a better question: What honorable Korean, or honorable MAN for that matter, would not want to be associated with a patriot like General Choi?  Must be the money that the Korean government uses to fund WTF schools worldwide...

Kukki Taekwondo, or National Taekwondo, is the national "sport" of Korea.  This is now an Olympic sport and it should not be.  The World Taekwondo Federation is the international governing body of this "sport" and the Federation itself should be disbanded and its officers jailed, or at the very least they should be forced to rename their federation and so-called "art" so as not to blaspheme the name of TaeKwon-Do as they have been doing for so many years.  There are national associations for this "sport" in over 160 countries around the world who should also be disbanded or renamed. 

Here's a tought question for Connolly AND the WTF: If General Choi is such a disgrace, why keep using the name HE came up with?  Why not rename it to something more fitting, something more "honorable?"

In the quest for revenge and in the carrying out of terrorism and hatred, logic seems to somehow go right out the window. Why would the South Korean Government keep the General's name of Tae Kwon-Do, other than to capitalize on it's popularity and further the cause of their own vindictiveness? If you're going to redo the art, as they have, why not redo the name and be rid of General Choi's "dishonor" completely?

Another quote.  The best of the snivelings of Connolly, his organization, and the WTF:  "There are many good, honest, well-intentioned people who have been recruited into Choi, Hong Hi’s organization, and the fighting system he developed.  They undoubtedly receive a good physical workout and the discipline of that practice may be providing them self-improvement.  To those end’s, God bless such students."

"Anyone thinking that they are participating in a traditional Korean military art through the International Taekwondo Federation, however, is seriously mistaken.  The International Taekwondo Federation is neither traditional, nor Korean, nor a military art; nor does it meet the existing standards for such an art in the Republic of Korea."

What should have been said:  Anyone thinking that they are participating in traditional TaeKwon-Do through the World TaeKwon-Do Federation is seriously mistaken.  The World TaeKwon-Do Federation is neither traditional, original, nor the military art that General Choi invented, developed, spread, named and taught; nor does it meet the criteria for anything that remotely resembles Tae Kwon-Do as the world-class art that it is.

The Connolly quote:  "Whatever may be said about Choi, Hong Hi - traitor, fraud, egotist, etc., - he was first and foremost a politician, on a global scale.  The International Taekwondo Federation was and is, first and last, about politics...... politics...... politics."

What should have been said:  "Whatever may be said about General Choi, Hong Hi - father, developer, originator and namer of Tae Kwon-Do; patriot, hero, loyalist, lover of his country as a whole, etc., - he was first and foremost the Father of TaeKwon-Do and a grand promoter of such, on a global scale.  The World TaeKwon-Do Federation was and is, first and foremost, about political manipulation, dishonor, terrorism, revenge, vindictiveness, and the promoter (and financier) of sham Tae Kwon-Do. PERIOD."

The disrespectful Connolly Obituary:  "Choi, Hong Hi died on June 15, 2002.  He is buried in communist North Korea."

What really should have been said:  "Major General Choi, Hong Hi was laid to rest on June 15, 2002.  He is buried in his homeland of Korea as he wanted to be (he saw no north and south, he saw his country as it will be again, as ONE).  His vision of a unified Korea lives on."

I would invite all who read this to compare any WTF "Tae Kwon-Do" school with any school affiliated with the ITF. You'll see the difference immediately and you'll know what I mean when I call the ITF "REAL TAE KWON-DO". Thank You.